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AOTA submitted comments challenging the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) 2011 Proposed Medicare Physician Fee Schedule rule. AOTA's comments particularly addressed the proposed Multiple Payment Procedure Reduction (MPPR), which AOTA opposes; the proposals for alternatives to the Medicare Part B cap; the Physician Quality Reporting Initiative (PQRI); and the proposed rules for the Medicare Annual Wellness Visit.
"AOTA has been working for two months on this rule to protect and promote occupational therapy's role in supporting the health and safety of patients," said Christina Metzler, Chief Public Affairs Officer. "We are particularly pleased that we were able to get considerable support from Capitol Hill opposing the MPPR approach." AOTA worked in coalition with other organizations to get 68 Representatives and 24 Senators to communicate to CMS their concerns about the proposal. AOTA also met with the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) and analyzed the data shared by CMS.
"We approached this as a considerable challenge to occupational therapy and our hard work over nearly 20 years to get appropriate payment for occupational therapy. We don't want to turn back the clock," said Metzler.
AOTA also promoted occupational therapy as an important component of the approach to the wellness visit and the related prevention plan. "OT has a lot to offer and the rule did not provide the direction to physicians that we felt was appropriate," noted Metzler. "We shared with them the research on how occupational therapy intervention promotes better health, well-being, and safety-key components of the wellness visit idea."
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